The Club Náutico de Sant Antoni has emerged as one of the entities supporting the Club Náutico de Ibiza's bid for the new concession to manage the marina facilities at the Port of Ibiza.

The connection came to light during the opening of the tender documents on September 9, when the evaluation committee identified a missing certificate confirming that one of the entities included as a solvency integrator was up to date with payments to the Balearic Islands Port Authority. That entity was the Club Náutico de Sant Antoni.

The revelation adds another layer to a closely watched competition for one of the most important nautical concessions in Ibiza.

Sant Antoni Club Included in the Bid

According to the tender documentation examined during the opening session, the Club Náutico de Sant Antoni forms part of the financial or technical solvency structure supporting the Club Náutico de Ibiza's proposal.

However, the precise extent of its involvement has not been publicly clarified.

The Club Náutico de Sant Antoni has not publicly detailed what form its support takes, while representatives of the Club Náutico de Ibiza have also declined to explain the arrangement. It therefore remains unclear whether the Sant Antoni entity is providing part of the required guarantee, contributing to the bidder's net worth requirements, or supporting the application in another capacity.

A Missing Certificate Reveals the Connection

The role of the Sant Antoni club became visible because of a documentation issue identified by the tender committee.

During the September 9 meeting at the offices of the Autoridad Portuaria de Baleares in Palma, officials noted that a certificate confirming payment compliance with the port authority was missing from one of the solvency integrators.

The committee requested that the document be provided, while also noting that the information could potentially be verified directly through its own records.

Both of the bids submitted for the concession contained documentation issues and were given a period to correct the deficiencies before the process continues.

Only Two Bids Remain

The tender has now effectively become a contest between two candidates: Puertos y Litorales Sostenibles, the current operator of the facility under the Port Nàutic Ibiza brand, and the Club Náutico de Ibiza.

The final opening of offers on September 9 confirmed that these were the only two proposals submitted. Earlier speculation about a possible third bidder did not materialise.

Puertos y Litorales Sostenibles currently manages the marina after taking over the facilities in May 2024, ending the Club Náutico de Ibiza's 99-year period managing the site.

A Major Concession for Ibiza

The tender covers the management and exploitation of a 33,352-square-metre nautical-sports installation at the Ribera-Poniente quay.

The concession is planned to run for 25 years, with the winning bidder expected to undertake investment of around €20 million across the different phases of the project.

The conditions go beyond the commercial operation of berths. The successful bidder must also maintain a significant sporting programme, with particular emphasis on sailing and canoeing.

Sporting activity carries considerable weight in the scoring system, accounting for 30 of the available 100 points. The tender also establishes a minimum annual sporting expenditure of €550,000 from the fourth year of the concession.

The Financial Challenge

One of the most demanding conditions of the tender is the requirement for a minimum net worth of €3.3 million.

That requirement has been a major issue for the Club Náutico de Ibiza, which has spent months seeking partners and other forms of financial support to meet the tender conditions. The inclusion of the Club Náutico de Sant Antoni in its solvency structure now provides a clearer indication of how the historic club has sought to strengthen its proposal.

At the same time, there is still no public confirmation of the exact financial commitment made by the Sant Antoni club.

Silence Surrounding the Arrangement

The lack of public explanation from the two nautical organisations has become one of the more intriguing elements of the tender.

Questions remain over the value and nature of the Sant Antoni club's participation, including whether it relates directly to the tender guarantees or to the minimum net worth requirement.

There has also been uncertainty over whether the involvement required approval from the Club Náutico de Sant Antoni's membership assembly, with the extent of that issue depending on the value and structure of the guarantee involved.

For now, however, the publicly confirmed fact is that the Sant Antoni club appears in the Ibiza club's tender as a solvency integrator.

Three Days to Correct the Documentation

The next stage of the process will be the correction of the documentation deficiencies identified during the opening session.

Both Puertos y Litorales Sostenibles and the Club Náutico de Ibiza have been given three days from notification to submit the missing documentation.

Only after those formal issues are resolved can the tender move forward to the assessment of the technical proposals and the remaining stages of the competition.

A New Chapter in Ibiza's Marina Battle

The tender is particularly significant for the Club Náutico de Ibiza, which has been seeking a route back to the facilities it managed for almost a century.

Its bid has been built around the sporting and social role of the historic institution, while the current operator is seeking to retain control of the marina following its takeover in 2024.

The emergence of the Club Náutico de Sant Antoni as part of the Ibiza club's solvency structure adds a previously undisclosed element to that competition.

For now, the precise terms of the collaboration remain behind closed doors. What is clear is that the relationship between two of Ibiza's established nautical institutions has become part of the island's closely watched battle over the future of the Port of Ibiza marina.